Area of Operation

Maktau area neighboring Tsavo West and Ndara Maungu area neighboring Tsavo East’s boundary.

Participants Isaac Maina – team leader Jacob Dadi - tracker Mutua Koti - tracker 2 KWS Armed rangers Joseph Musembi - intelligence

Findings

A total of 720 snares were recovered, 3 zebra found snared in the same area. One patrol found a giraffe that had been slaughtered and the meat dried, the snare was retrieved. Added to which a jacket, pan, and miscellaneous poacher’s items were found. We followed a wheelbarrow track heading towards a nearby village and came across a sack full of dried meat hidden in the bush.

The most exciting event was the rescue of a dik dik from a snare that had been freshly laid. We heard a scream from nearby bush and rushed to the area where we found a dik dik fighting to escape from a snare. The more she struggled, the worse the grip became around her neck, had we not been in the area the animal would have suffered an excruciating death.

We found out that the poachers put their snares away from roads making it difficult to reach them. They block large stretches with brush leaving only a few paths for animals to travel along which are well snared. In this way there is virtually no escape for the animals in this area.

Report by Isaac Maina